Vandals struck properties across several areas of Paphos district overnight, Friday into Saturday. The damage came to light on Saturday morning as commercial premises opened, revealing that 10 locations had been hit overnight in Kato Paphos, Chlorakas, Peyia and other points in Paphos’s peri-urban area.
Owners of kiosks, a fuel station, a fruit shop and other premises came forward with similar reports as they opened for business. The spree began with an earlier incident in Tala, where unidentified perpetrators damaged a pharmacy and a cafe, and stole various items from the pharmacy.
The scale of that Friday night’s vandalism alarmed the Paphos Police Directorate. Officials told philenews it is now clear the acts were organised.
They believe the vandalism was not random, nor unrelated to the crackdown on offenders that followed serious incidents targeting food delivery couriers on Tuesday night in Mouttalos.
In the days after those courier incidents, the sources said, Paphos police stepped up patrols and checks across the city to tackle offending and identify others wanted over the attacks on delivery workers.
Police believe Friday night’s wave of vandalism was a reaction by groups of young people to those intensified checks. Senior force officials say this will not halt the crackdown on illegal activity, but will instead lead to it being stepped up further.
Paphos Police Directorate teams have continued investigating all the vandalised sites since first light on Saturday, working to identify the perpetrators. Authorities already have substantial CCTV footage from almost all the incidents, which is being examined.
Police update
Assistant Paphos Police Director Michalis Nikolaou confirmed police are treating the 10 confirmed incidents as burglary, criminal damage and theft cases.
Based on investigations so far, the 10 incidents took place between 3am and 5.30am at various points in Paphos, Nikolaou said. Those responsible targeted three pharmacies, three fuel stations, two small supermarkets and two kiosks.
The total value of goods stolen from the businesses is around €4,000, Nikolaou said, while the cost of the damage caused has not yet been calculated.
Investigations so far indicate there were four perpetrators, their faces covered, all travelling on the same motorcycle, he said.
Witness accounts and other information are being assessed with the aim of identifying and arresting those responsible, Nikolaou said, appealing to anyone who saw or heard anything to contact police immediately.
